Dining Room

Designed for large-scale entertaining, this gated Mediterranean has a loggia that can seat more than 50 guests and a formal dining room for as many as 40 that opens to a terrace. A wing devoted to the master bedroom suite contains a bar, dual bathrooms, walk-in closets and a gym. Location: 979 Bel Air Road, Bel-Air 90077 Asking price: $16.7 million Year built: 1990 House size: Five bedrooms, nine bathrooms, more than 10,000 square feet Lot size: 37,994 square feet Features: Stone floors, high ceilings, library, family room, den, screening room, office, service entrance, seven fireplaces, guest house, covered patio, courtyards, fountains, koi pond, swimming pool, motor court for 10 cars, three-car garage About the area: In the third quarter, 35 single-family homes sold in the 90077 ZIP Code at a median price of $1.798 million, according to DataQuick.

Oscar-winning actress Hilary Swank has put her Mediterranean-style house in Pacific Palisades on the market for $9.495 million. Built in 1928, the 6,722-square-foot home has six fireplaces, six bedrooms and 6 1/2 bathrooms in three stories. Features of the ocean-view house include a step-down living room, a dining room that can seat 20, a theater, a cigar room/wine cellar, a gym and a separate office or maid's quarters. The grounds of about a third of an acre include a swimming pool and terraced vegetable gardens.

Spokesman to the stars Howard Bragman has listed his gated house in Hollywood Hills West at $2.845 million. The contemporary compound features vaulted ceilings, an open dining room and kitchen, a screening room, floor-to-ceiling built-in book shelves, two fireplaces, four bedrooms and four bathrooms in 4,000 square feet of living space. There is a heated swimming pool surrounded by deck space for outdoor dining and entertaining. Bragman, 56, founded the public relations firm Fifteen Minutes in 2005 and is vice chairman of Reputation.com.

Actress Kiele Sanchez and her ex-husband, writer-director Zach Helm, have sold their house in the Hollywood Hills for $1.75 million. The restored Mediterranean, built in 1928, features a two-story entry, stenciled beam ceilings and original tile work. The 4,000 square feet of living space includes a living room with a fireplace, a formal dining room, an updated kitchen, a breakfast area, a service entrance, four bedrooms and three bathrooms. Sanchez, 34, has starred since 2010 on "The Glades," which has been renewed for a third season.

To understand Red Hill, Jason Michaud and Trevor Rocco's newish place in a converted Chinese bakery just north of Sunset, you could do worse than to look at the bread-and-butter plate, a once-free nicety that has evolved into an item of competition in L.A.'s new surge of small-plates restaurants. Red Hill's bread is dense and multigrained, a slightly refined version of the loaves your mother may have baked if you grew up in a household with the Moosewood cookbook on the shelves. The pale gob of butter tastes freshly churned from sweet cream.

Actor Anton Yelchin has become a first-time home buyer with the purchase of a house in Studio City for $945,000. The gated country English-style one-story sits on a quarter of an acre with a swimming pool, a spa and mature trees. The 1,845 square feet of living space features vaulted ceilings, French doors and fireplaces in the living and dining rooms. The house, custom built in 1940, contains three bedrooms and 21/2 bathrooms. Yelchin, 23, played Pavel Chekov in the 2009 "Star Trek" movie.

After leasing her West Hollywood house out last year, "Gossip Girl" actress Kelly Rutherford has returned it to the market at $1.099 million. The Spanish bungalow, built in 1926, features a living room with fireplace that opens to a sky-lighted dining room, an updated kitchen, two bedrooms and 13/4 bathrooms. The deck contains a bar and a built-in barbecue. Rutherford, 43, plays husband-hopping Lily van der Woodsen on "Gossip Girl" (2007-present). She was also in the series "E-Ring" (2005-06)

"Glee's" Kevin McHale , who plays paraplegic Artie Abrams, has bought a house in the Hollywood Hills for $1.025 million. The Midcentury home features a tall entry leading to a combined living and dining room with vaulted ceilings and city and hillside views. A wall of windows open to a deck on the main level of the more than 2,000-square-foot house. The kitchen features red cabinetry and stainless steel appliances, plus an island/bar with seating. Floor-to-ceiling glass sliding doors open to a fenced lawn off the master bedroom suite, which has a sitting area.

Writer-producer-director Pen Densham has sold his house in the Windsor Square area for $2.75 million. The English Manor-style home, built in 1906, was moved to its current location from Wilshire Boulevard and Vermont Avenue by the Bullock family — think department store — earning it the name Bullock House. An oversized entry with beamed ceilings leads to the living room, library, formal dining room and carved-wood staircase. There are eight bedrooms, 71/2 bathrooms and a basement.

Singer Melanie Brown — Scary Spice from her days with the Spice Girls — and her husband, producer Stephen Belafonte, have put their Tarzana compound on the market at $3.45 million. The country French-style house, which was recently renovated, contains a gym, five bedrooms and eight bathrooms in 8,200 square feet of living space. The chateau, a detached media recording studio, a detached movie theater and a swimming pool sit on more than half an acre. Outdoor living spaces include a dining room with chandeliers, a living room and a cabana.